Total area: 42,823 sq mi (110,910 sq km )
Population (2009 est.): 7,204,687
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Sofia - 1,088,700
Other large cities: Plovdiv - 338,200; Varna - 312,300; Burgas - 192,000; Ruse - 161,000
Currency: Lev
Languages: Bulgarian 85%, Turkish 10%, Roma 4%
Religions: Bulgarian Orthodox 83%, Islam 12%, other Christian 1%
Time zone: GMT+2; DST: GMT+3 (from last Sunday in March to last Sunday in October).
Electricity: AC 230V/50Hz; European plugs with two round pins are the standard
Bulgaria is a country in the Balkans in south-eastern Europe situated on the western side of the Black Sea. It is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia to the northwest, the Republic of Macedonia to the southwest, Greece to the south, and Turkey to the southeast.
The topography of Bulgaria is marked by two mountain ranges (Rila, Pirin and Rhodope mountains in the southwest and Balkan Mountains running east-west in the middle of the country) and two great valleys. Musala, at 2,925 m (9,596 ft), located in Rila mountains, is the highest peak of the Balkan Peninsula. There are also around 260 glacial lakes in the Rila and Pirin mountain ranges.
After joining the European Union in 2007, with a lot of new developments, Bulgaria has been an increasingly popular tourist destination in Europe. It offers some of the Europe largest beaches at its Black Sea coast, to be enjoyed from May to October, as well as great skiing conditions in winter at mountain resorts.
